Life Lessons from Fundraising

Scent Circle Fundraising, made easy for your club or organization

In many ways, fundraising is the life blood of many organizations.  Be it raising money for a band trip for the big parade; a week long summer camp; supplies for the classroom or new team uniforms.  The list of needs goes on forever.  I don't need to write about why groups, clubs, and organizations from the young and old need to raise money.  What I think is most important are the life lessons that can be learned, especially by kids, that really participate in fund raising.  I think we forget that or don't take it seriously.

Having been involved with many organizations that have hosted fundraising events, I feel the trend is to get to the bottom line of raising the needed money, but I think we are missing out on the educational life lessons that could be the bigger part of participating.  One group I belonged to, a booster club for a high school athletic team, really missed the boat.  A vast majority of the parents just wanted to "write a check" and couldn't be bothered with fundraising.  What a missed opportunity to teach values to our kids.  The value of working to get what you want.  The value of record keeping lessons, managing money, customer service and saying thank you.  Let's look at a few lessons to be learned.

I am just as guilty as many parents who want their kids to have it all....  to have it better than we had it...  to take care of them and give them our all.  Some of us have more all than others.  We might be teaching our kids to expect that they will be given all we can for nothing in return...  are we responsible for this society of entitlement?  Requiring the members to actually do some of the work (be it selling or taking orders), teaches that we should work for the things we want.  You want to go with the band on the trip or for your team to get new uniforms?  Mom or dad might foor part of the bill, but by going door to door or standing in front of the local grocery store and solicit sales, if taught how to do it right, teaches earning what we get.  Participants can learn customer service skills....  saying please and thank you.  They learn that everyone might not be interested and will say no and how to act properly when they get those no's.  They are taught money management and how to be accountable for the monies they collect and turn into the organizers.  A little extra money counting skills can help prepare them for a real job in the future.

I don't have time, how much should I just write a check out for. Some can do that, others can't, none should.  I have heard so many parents say that....ugh!  Make the time.  Teach the value of working for what you get and not to expect something for nothing....  entitlement is not a fundamental right for which this country was built.

Sometimes there are personal rewards or prizes participants receive for being top sellers.  Not everyone should receive a reward for participating.  Teach that in contest and games, there are often winners and losers.  Teach respect and sportsmanship, graceful winning and being happy for those that exceeded expectations.

How Perfect Do You Have To Be?

One great thing about being a part of the Scentsy Family is the unending support you can find from the family. Whether you just need words of encouragement, a pat on the back for something amazing you just did or a hug, you can find it in the family. I found an opportunity to pay it forward thought that this might be a story that others could benefit from as well. I sure know there have been times I could have stepped back and realized that being much less than perfect is not only acceptable, but can be satisfying beyond your wildest dreams.

I read a post on Facebook from a gal who had just joined Scentsy, but it could have been any business opportunity and was already a little down after only 3 days in. She had not made a sale yet and had "only" booked 2 catalog parties for this month. I actually smirked a bit, "only" booked 2 parties in her first 3 days. Little did she know that she was probably one of a who who ever booked 2 parties in 3 days... most would do anything to book 2 parties in the next 3 days.

I replied to her post with an abbreviated version of this story. I see you are from a different part of the country, I am in New England. As we approach baseballs All-Star break and I don't know if you are a baseball fan or not, but bear with me. Here in New England, Boston to be exact, Big Papi, David Ortiz, is a Red Sox slugger.... Ortiz is a nine-time All-Star, a three-time World Series champion and he holds the Red Sox single-season record for home runs with 54, set during the 2006 season. Ortiz has hit 481 career home runs, which ranks 29th on the MLB all-time home run list. He is the all-time leader in MLB history for home runs (429), runs batted in (RBIs) (1,383) and hits (1,954) by a DH. Besides all that, he is a really nice guy. The Red Sox have paid David over 30 million for the last 2 seasons. 30 million because he hits lots of home runs.... by the way, he runs pretty slow.Here the moral to the story... he is paid to hit home runs. EVERY time he gets up to bat, he wants to and wants to hit a home run, the Red Sox want him to hit a home run, the fans expect him to hit a home run. He doesn't. In fact, he gets put out about 70% of the time he gets up to bat. Not only does he fail to hit a home run, he makes an out!  He fails at doing what people expect 70% of the time - he doesn't hit a home run!

You want everyone you talk to to but a product from you, you want them to join you in this opportunity.  You expect them to, but they don't.  In fact, like Big Papi, you strike out most of the time too.  They don't always buy, the don't want to join (yet).  In fact, you probably strike out more than 70% of the time... maybe even 90%.  But wait....

The Red Sox paid him 30 million over the last 2 years to do that!  In fact, they paid him that because he is one of the best at what he does.  You don't need to hit a home run every time, you just have to keep getting up to bat, practicing, learning and trying harder...  like Big Papi, and you too can become a Super Star (pun intended).

In your business, you don't need to make a sale, book a party, or sponsor every person you talk to.... but you do need to keep talking, keep learning, keep getting better.  So how do you do all that...  you listen, you read, you do what the other successful people are doing.  You don't listen to those that tell you that you can't...  what they are really saying is THEY can't and they don't want you too either.  It has been said before, when you are new, just learning....  you will make mistakes, you will strike out more.  That's okay, learn that now so it doesn't surprise you when it happens.  Make up for inexperience, but working harder, listening more and talk to everyone.

For what it's worth from this Scentsy guy from New England... you are rockin it just by being in it! You are at the right place, at the right time.  Go get em!

The Side of a Coffee Tale I Never Knew Existed

Dictionary

AHA Moment

1. It's a moment of clarity, a defining moment where you gain real wisdom - wisdom you can use to change your life. Whether big or small, funny or sad, they can be surprising and inspiring. Each one is unique, deeply personal, and we think, worth sharing.

Obviously not American

I just had an eye opening, aha moment.  It all started so innocently and has come to shed huge light on my apparent lack of knowledge.  There has been a lot of "Canada" going on recently in my life.  First, my favorite "sister-in-law living in Canada" came down to the states with her family last week where we spent the better part of a day together, debating Canadian vs States, taxes, and beaver tail.  My son had been visiting his girl friend in Cornwall, Ontario, where she is from and where they went to hockey school and then he is working a hockey program in Ottawa for the week...  Canada this, Canada that is all I have been hearing eh.  Then someone posted a picture of a coffee cup mocking the "hot coffee" law suit in our sue happy America from an apparent Canadian coffee shop.

I posted the cup picture to Facebook with a comment mocking the American way of suing anyone and everyone for anything and everything...  this cup mocks what has been referred to and joked about laughable law suit about a lady that sued McDonald's because their coffee was too hot and it burned her when "she" dumped it in her lap...  and won over 2 million dollars!

Enter my friend from South Carolina, Kerin (owner and founder of "I'm a mother of an Angel found at https://www.facebook.com/iamamothertoanangel).  She asked if I had Netflix, which I did, and suggested I watch a movie named "Hot Coffee".  I checked it out and almost instantly the aha moment struck.

It's a movie about frivolous lawsuits, greed, corporate America, politics and government.  Wow.  Shed a whole new light as my eyes were opened to some things I had previously assumed....  and the saying is right when you assume something, except this time I was the "u" and "me" in my assumptions.  I urge each and every one of you to watch the movie if you have Netflix or get it on DVD, or come to my house and watch it.  It's worth the hour twenty minutes or so.  I'll bet your perspective on several things will change and likely cause you to question and thing or two.  I hope it does.

Haven't given you enough inspiration?  Here is one of Stella's burn pictures, others are too graphic for here:

Much of the documentary is about tort reform, which, in some cases, I can understand, others, I can not.  Unfortunately, it seems that the only one that really gets hurt in many of these cases is the injured person... win or lose.  When there are cases of people really trying to abuse the system and "cash in", I have no problem finding against them.  It's all about accountability.  The McDonald's case punitive damages were not even about the woman being burned...  all she ever asked for was coverage above what her insurance paid (they offered her $800 against over $10,000 in medical expenses) and that they would check the coffee pot settings.  Apparently McDonald's was aware of over 700 burn complains and ignored them all.

The McDonald's suit is just a small part.  Pour a cup of coffee and watch "Hot Coffee".

Movie trailer

http://www.hotcoffeethemovie.com/Default.asp

Irrational change is.... well, irrational

an Abraham Lincoln misquote, but meaningful nevertheless

Although this is most likely a misquote by Lincoln, I think there is a good argument that this is what he meant, after all, what he really said is difficult to read and comprehend at first read.  I think the quote really is: "If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time or die by suicide."

Change is one thing, stupid irrational snap judgements are not what this country needs.  It's time to reclaim our country and stop the wacko irrational actions of many.  Bring back logic and being reasonable as a common mindset.  Political correctness should not replace rational decisions.